Meeting Faith Ringgold
February 3, 2021 | Felicity Greene
During this morning’s meeting, the children of the Sky Class discussed how we have said goodbye to the month of January, and entered a new month – February! While this month is exciting for many reasons, it is special because we get to spend time learning about and remembering the ways that African Americans have helped our country grow and be great.
Each week during Black History Month, the Sky Class will study a Black American, and learn about their many contributions to our lives and culture. The children will study these Black Americans’ work in art, activism, science, invention, and music.
Today, the children were introduced to the artist, Faith Ringgold, and were excited to hear that she is still living… here in New Jersey! Ringgold’s art spans many mediums including paint, mixed media sculptures, performance art, and children’s stories. Some of her art can even be seen in Subway stations in New York City. The children watched a short video, in which Ms. Ringgold told about her life growing up in Harlem, her art education, and evolution as an artist.
The children saw some of Ms. Ringgold’s more well known pieces of art such as her story quilts, that tell the stories of real African American heroes.
Throughout the week, the children will also hear stories that were written by Faith Ringgold, and feature her artwork,
and reflect on her artwork by creating their own Kuba designs with the use of tessellation tiles.
“Is this her artwork? Wow.”
